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Daily Archive – November 30th, 2017

I waited for what felt like a full year to read this book. I put it on hold as soon as it came out and dropped everything when it arrived on my shelf. The hype for it was insane… but so well-deserved.

The Hate U Give tells the story of Starr Carter, a sixteen-year-old girl who lives in two worlds. She spends her days in a predominantly white private school, where she watches what she says and how she says it. But when school is over and all her friends go home to their fancy houses and gates communities, Starr returns to Garden Heights, where she no longer has to worry about appearing a stereotype but she also has to deal with the realities of living in “the hood”.

Starr’s two worlds collide one evening when she witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.

Between riots, protests, allegations and assumptions, Starr discovers that her actions and words are more powerful than she ever thought. Speaking up could change her life and her community for ever. Speaking up will come with a price. But so will staying silent.

Tupac said that Thug Life means “The Hate U Give Little Infants F**ks Everyone” and, as Starr learns and so many of us know, those words are still heartbreakingly relevant. This line reverberates through every page of Angie Thomas’s genius debut novel. Everyone needs to read this book and take its message to heart.

Hate begets hate. Violence leads to more violence. And staying silent in the face of injustice changes nothing.

I won’t lie. This was not an easy book to read. I read it through tears and with an aching heart. But I would read it again in a second and I urge you all to read it too. It is one of the most important books written in our time.